Do you want the secret to making your sauces, marinades, stews and soups out of this world delicious? Do you want your friends to give you that look after the first bite when they know something is special about the meal you made? Do you want to make homemade dishes taste like ones from your favorite restaurant? Just add wine. Wine will make a simple recipe into a rich and luxurious experience. I think I’ve been watching too many shows on the Food Network channel.

Recently I made my typical marinara sauce and also added a 1/2 cup of red wine. Wow! What a difference! The sauce, which I had made many times before was already delicious. It consisted of several Italian herbs, chopped onion, diced garlic, sliced mushrooms, diced bell peppers and minced carrots for a little sweetness. Lastly, I added a pound of grass fed ground beef (browned in olive oil), which has so much flavor in itself. By adding the wine, however, the sauce was bolder, brighter, richer and, if I can use the word, elegant. It gave the sauce a smoother mouthfeel too for all you foodies out there. Even my boys noticed a difference in the sauce. A good difference when they said how delicious dinner was. Or maybe they were just hungry.

The great thing was that the opened bottle of red wine was over a month old. No longer able to enjoy it in a wine glass but not quite at the vinegar stage either. I have added “old” red wine to spaghetti sauces, soups and on hot summer nights, sangria. Older red wine is an excellent substitute to red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar and apple cider vinegar. If you’re worried about red wine getting too old, just remember what my mom told me last week. “Wine doesn’t go bad, Eric. I’ve had a bottle of opened red wine in the pantry for six months.”

A couple months ago I shared the benefits of deadlifting. Using proper body mechanics and lifting techniques you can strengthen many body parts, including the back, legs, arms, shoulders and core. So here’s a question for you. Why do so many weightlifters and powerlifters wear belts during this exercise? The reason is that they are lifting several hundred pounds and pushing their bodies to their absolute limits. To see what I mean, you can check out the World Deadlift Championship on July 9th where at least two of my favorite strongman competitors will attempt to lift 500 kg. That’s 1000 pounds! Remember that a weightlifting belt is designed to protect the back by adding abdominal support and helping to stabilize the whole area. When we mortals lift, typically we are not stressing every body part to the point of tearing itself. We’re focusing on strengthening our core, increasing flexibility and improving technique.

Okay, so now back to the topic at hand. Deadlifting can be performed with a barbell, dumbbells, stretch cords, rubber tubing, a medicine ball, or just using your bodyweight. One of my clients uses a Hex Trap Bar in the fitness room of his office building. I absolutely love it! It offers three grip choices depending on the size of your hand. The grips are in a neutral position which, for many people, is more comfortable than pronated or supinated. Lastly, the lifter performs a deadlift while standing in the middle of the hexagon-shaped bar. This favors center of gravity, so as you lift, you will not be leaning forward (ouch!), backward (more ouch!) or to the sides (my back hurts just thinking about it . . . ouch!!) That’s an excellent feature.

Just be sure to use weight plate clamps or collars so the weights do not slide off the bar while you’re exercising. Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!

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You can bid online or over the phone (608)263-9985. The auction begins Wednesday June 1st and concludes on the 5th. To learn more or view other auction items, go to WPT Auction.

If you’re going to play basketball, wear basketball shoes. If you’re going to play tennis, wear tennis shoes. If you’re going for a run, wear running shoes. So what type of shoes should you wear when you go to the gym to lift, do some cardio and stretch? The answer is a shoe that fits the job. Something that gives support, is lightweight and breathes. It doesn’t need to be a cross trainer unless you plan on doing a lot of ploymetrics and/or running around on artificial grass. If you are doing squats, lunges and leg press, for example, you want a shoe that has lateral support and has a flat sole. NOT A RUNNING SHOE! I can’t tell you how many times I see people exercising in running shoes just because it has a big swoosh on the side. Remember, running shoes are designed to propel you forward. Most of them have built up cushioned heels for when your heel strikes the asphalt. FYI as far as running techniques go, this is mechanically incorrect and very dangerous. In addition, running shoes have zero, zilch, nada lateral support. I cringe when I see people doing lunges in the gym wearing running shoes. Often they have a difficult time keeping their front heel down so that their knee crosses over their toes. That’s a lot of pressure on the knee. Lunging in running shoes also causes the foot to roll out laterally (supinate) towards their pinky toe. This can cause undo stress and pressure on the feet, ankles, knees and hips.

I trained a young woman, who was complaining about pain behind her knee. She had been taking classes at Monkey Bar Gym and said that whenever she did lateral jumps her knee would hurt. She demonstrated for me, and I observed her ankles rolling. Looking down, I pointed at her Mizuno running shoes and asked if those were the shoes she trained in. She said yes. Rhetorically I asked if the MBG instructor told her that running shoes were for running and that she would benefit by wearing cross trainers for their classes. That day she picked up a pair of Under Armour cross trainers. The next time I saw her, she said her knee pain had gone away. Problem solved.

I’m dating myself, but do you remember when ALL the running shoes were promoting their anti-pronation shoes? It was just a good piece of marketing and everybody bought into it. Let me educate you about your feet. When you run, jump and push off your feet, you are primarily suppose to push off the big toe. It has the biggest joint and helps to keep the direction of force in line with your ankle, leg and hip. So if you’re looking to improve your running, jumping and pushing a slight pronation is not a bad thing. As an aside, be careful when you’re buying arch supports or shoe inserts. These can contribute to supination which again is not good.

When was the last time you tried on a pair of athletic shoes? There’s not much to them, and these days they require very little, if any, break in time. Do you remember when you had to wear a pair of shoes for a few weeks to break them in? Now, it’s out of the box, onto your feet and you’re good-to-go on the court, path, track, turf, etc.

How often should you replace your shoes? That depends on how much mileage you put on them, how often you wear them and how hard you are on the shoe. As a rule of thumb, I’d say every six months. Realize that shoes break down over time even if you don’t visibly see wear and tear. Just by standing in shoes, you will compress the material so that over time, they will feel like bedroom slippers. Might feel comfy but not safe or practical for exercise. Replacing my tennis shoes are more obvious since the outer sole wears down much faster than the inside. Because of court tendencies, and you can say this about volleyball, basketball, soccer and many other sports, the right and left shoes don’t wear evenly or in the same place.

So, Eric, what’s with the picture of these Sketchers? These are my second pair and are labeled as athletic sneakers. Not cross training, running, basketball or walking shoes. I had hit a point with my previous shoes where my feet were getting tired and my shins and knees were starting to hurt. That is a telltale sign that it’s time for new shoes for me. I stopped by DSW (they can have excellent deals in the sales racks in the back) and tried on a lot of shoes. Nothing felt good. I finally asked a salesperson for help and told her that I was looking for a comfortable shoe that could handle several hours of standing a day and some exercise. She showed me the Sketchers and indicated there was memory foam inside. I slipped on the shoe and it fit like a glove. The top of the shoe is mesh, so it breathes very well and does not constrict my foot at all. The funny thing about your feet is that you might be experiencing hip, back or even neck pain, and it could be solved with a new pair of shoes. Feel free to contact me when you buy your next pair, and we can see which shoe is the best fit.

Directions
Step 1. Place all ingredients in blender or food processor and process until creamy. We used a handheld immersion blender.
Step 2. For a more opaque and richer pesto, add cream and process 10 seconds more.
Step 3. It’s now ready to serve. Do not cook.

When you picture someone performing a deadlift, what images come to mind? Perhaps that of Brian Shaw, American professional strongman competitor, who won three World’s Strongest Man contests? Or perhaps Annie Thorisdottir, Olympic weightlifter and CrossFit Games champion? Or maybe your uncle, who threw out his back while trying to hoist a 40 pound bag of mulch up onto his shoulder? I’m here to tell you that the deadlift is an excellent exercise. Deadlifting is more than brute strength. It’s about developing proper technique. Building functional strength. Learning how to recruit multiple muscle groups. Protecting and strengthening your back.

“Chest out! Hips forward!” My clients often hear me say this during deadlifts. Deadlifting is not just standing up with a weight in your hands. You literally pull the barbell up and toward your body. In order to do this safely and effectively, you need to keep a flat back throughout the entire movement. Scapular retraction (pinching your shoulder blades together) will help protect your back. (Remember that a rounded or flexed spine is a weak/compromised spine. That’s how you get injured.) One more thing. Be sure to exhale as you lift the weight up. Bearing down (holding your breath) while lifting might cause a stroke. Happy thoughts, right?

“Form is a constant regardless of the weight you lift.” That’s another Eric saying. Whether it’s 20 pounds, 100 pounds or 500 pounds, the technique you employ should always be good. I’m not talking about trying to lift a weight that you can’t even budge. Improper technique, an imbalance in strength and flexibility and inadequately warming up are the culprits for injuries. But that’s a whole other blog article.

So here are your 5 reasons to add deadlifts into your exercise routine:

1. Power. There is something about engaging all the muscles in your body (at least it feels that way sometimes) when you deadlift. And you just can’t get that doing dumbbell biceps curls.

2. Core strength. Hips, low back, abdominals. They all work together when you deadlift.

3. Injury prevention. How would you like to kiss low back problems good bye? Do deadlifts. When I worked in a physical therapy clinic in California, the Physical Therapist said the main cause of low back injuries was picking something up off the ground with a rounded back.

4. Getting in tune with your body. Gym exercise machines don’t teach body awareness. You just sit down and move some handles or bars. They move in a fixed range of motion. Deadlifts teach you to recruit multiple muscle groups at the same time. You will quickly identify your weak point(s) when you deadlift.

5. Adding creativity. Workout programs can get a little boring after a while. How about adding deadlifts? Your mind and body will say “Hey, what’s this new exercise?” It might just be the exercise to give you that kick in the butt.

Want to watch some textbook deadlifting? Check out this great video of professional strongman, Brian Shaw.

I often call my mom to get her take on certain recipes and to help with culinary conundrums. She’ll often respond with a question like “Do you have an open bottle of red wine? White wine will do fine too.” Or “You can put that into a turkey chowder.” She always has incredible insight. Recently, I was attempting to recreate a dish from a Chinese restaurant when I got stumped. So I picked up the phone and called Mom. Calling Mom is pretty much the solution for most things, right? Anyhow, I asked her if she remembered “that eggplant dish” from China Wok Buffet in Middleton (now China Wok). She said. “Yes” and without hesitation asked if I had red pepper flakes on hand. Ah, yes, that was the missing ingredient. Mom to the rescue again. It’s become a tradition that we order out from them when she visits, and that is one of her favorite dishes. So we put our heads together and I tried to replicate the dish. For a first run, it turned out good. It could have been a little spicier, and the sauce could have been a little thicker. But as Mom would say, “That’s splitting hairs.” Otherwise, for not working off a recipe, I was happy with the outcome. So here you go!

Directions
In a large skillet, add peanut oil and set heat on HI. Once the oil is hot, add the onion and garlic. Cook and stir for two minutes until onions start to become translucent. Lower heat to medium/hi, then add eggplant, mushrooms, red pepper flakes and plum sauce. Be sure to stir occasionally so the food does not stick and burn. Total cooking time will depend on the size of the mushroom and eggplant pieces. I like my vegetables to have a little “chew” to them so I do not cook them down for too long. And remember that moisture will come out of the vegetables so that will add liquid to the skillet and soften the veggies. If the sauce becomes too liquidity, you can add a little cornstarch and water to thicken it.